The New York Jets may have to part ways with this full-time starter.
The New York Jets need a little bit of everything this offseason. We know they need a quarterback, but they also need to plug holes up and down their roster.
Luckily, the Jets are slated to have expansive cap room heading into free agency, so they should be able to add some significant pieces. Assuming any players actually want to play for New York, of course.
But even with the Jets already having significant cap space (about $74.3 million, per Over the Cap), it never hurts to clear more money.
Unfortunately, New York does not have a whole lot of realistic cut candidates on its roster. Yes, the Jets are expected to move on from Justin Fields, but they only stand to save $1 million if they do so.
The easiest path to Gang Green actually opening up some salary would be releasing defensive tackle Harrison Phillips, which is why Bleacher Report's Alex Ballentine has listed him as one of the team's top three most likely cap casualties.
New York Jets defensive tackle Harrison Phillips. Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images."Harrison Phillips is the notable exception as none of his $7.5 million cap hit is guaranteed," Ballentine wrote. "He played well and was the 21st-ranked interior defender of the 129 that PFF graded. Still, he's a 30-year-old run-plugging defensive tackle set to be the sixth-highest-paid player on the roster. That's worth a look."
Phillips is the only player on the Jets' roster who would yield at least $2 million in savings if cut, so it definitely makes sense for New York to weigh the idea.
The Jets would save all of that $7.5 million if they decided to part ways with Phillips, and the 30-year-old doesn't fit their timeline anyway.
What's unfortunate is that Phillips started all 17 games for New York in 2025, registering 60 tackles and posting a 76.1 run defense grade at Pro Football Focus. That ranked sixth among all qualifying interior defenders.
The Jets' run defense ranked 29th in the NFL with Phillips clogging the middle this past season, so imagine what would happen without him?
Of course, New York could always address that problem in the NFL Draft, but when you have so many other glaring needs, that becomes more difficult.
Perhaps holding on to Phillips would actually be the best course of action for Gang Green.